A Tamil voter without knowledge of English or the news may have returned
home from Rahul Gandhi's Krishnagiri rally today thinking the prime minister had given away money to a Nirav "Choudhary".
The goof-up was not Rahul's -- the translator who repeated his accusations about Narendra Modi did some...editing.
Take a look.
Rahul Gandhi: "...[Narendra Modi gave] 35,000 crores to Mehul Choksi..."
Translator: "...he gave 31,000 crores to Nirav Choudhary..."
Yup. He got the number wrong, too. And this wasn't exactly the lone low point in an otherwise flawless performace either.
Twitterati who commented on the unfolding debacle did not mince words. "If you are someone who knows both English and Tamil", said V Prem Shanker, a journalist, "you definitely heard two sets of speeches happening simultaneously while watching Rahul Gandhi rally."
Here are more reactions.
DMK MP TKS Elangovan is doing far better translation for @RahulGandhi in a public meeting at Salem in western TN https://t.co/40RTsAjQ3J
Karthigaichelvan S (@karthickselvaa) April 12, 2019
@RahulGandhi definitely needs a good Tamil translator. He is making some strong points at the public meeting in Krishnagiri the impact of which is being lost in translation.@INCPuducherry @INCIndia pic.twitter.com/vWuceLNYEP
Tr Gayathri Srikanth (@Tr_Gayathri) April 12, 2019
@RahulGandhi most respected Rahulji i want to inform you that your translater in krishnagiri missed most of the vital points.
Bishop RD Isaac (@BishopRDIsaac2) April 12, 2019
I VOLUNTEER .Not for popularity and anything else. But i believe youvtalk sense .I believe you are the changr. Stay blessed.Rock & Roll for India.
TNPCC, it’s really not that hard to find a good translator. Half of what Rahul Gandhi said today in Krishnagiri was lost in translation #Elections2019 #TNPolitics @INCTamilNadu
Shilpa Nair (@NairShilpa1308) April 12, 2019
Another translator, former state Congress chief KV Thangkabalu, was lampooned last month in meme after meme after Rahul Gandhi spoke to voters in Kanyakumari.
Thangkabalu has since been put in charge of Rahul's campaign in Wayanad.
To get an idea of how bad his performance was, consider this. He translated these words -- "...and that is why we respect the people of Tamil Nadu" -- as "Narendra Modi is the enemy of the Tamil people."
One of the memes mocking him imagined Rahul Gandhi as Virat Kohli and Thangkabalu as the India captain's IPL team, Royal Challengers Bangalore.
The humour uses a pun.
Kohli says: "We play to win the IPL."
The RCB: "Naangal IPL aaduvadhe veen." -- There's no point in us playing the IPL.
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